3 open seats on Hawai‘i County Council up for grabs in General Election on Nov. 3

With six of the nine Hawaiʻi County Council seats determined during the August primary, it leaves only three seats to be decided in the upcoming General Election on Nov. 3.

And all three of the seats are open, with Ashley Kierkiewicz (District 4) and Matt Kaneali‘i-Kleinfelder (District 5) not able to run due to term limits. Each has served eight years. And Michelle Galimba (District 6) deciding not to seek re-election after serving two years.

Here are the open races:

• District 4 (Lower Puna and Pāhoa): Eileen O‘Hara vs. Lloyd Enriquez
• District 5 (Upper Puna and portions of Kea‘au): Shannon Matson vs. Ikaika Rodenhurst
• District 6 (Ka‘ū, South Kona and Volcano): Guy Enriques vs. Zed Ka‘apana Aki

County Council incumbents Heather Kimball (District 1), Jenn Kagiwada (District 2) and Dennis “Fresh” Onishi (District 3) won their contests during the primary election in August. Newcomer Manu Powers won the District 7 seat. And Holeka Inaba (District 8) and James Hustace (District 9) ran unopposed and also will return to the council.

Ballots were mailed to registered voters on Oct. 16 and according to Hawai‘i County’s election office, 20,177 ballots out of the 112,003 issued have been returned as of Oct. 23.

Jon Henricks, Hawai‘i County clerk, said all council members, regardless of tenure, take the oath of office during the inauguration ceremony that takes place at noon on Dec. 7.

The 2026-28 County Council convenes in the afternoon of that same day for its organizational meeting, where the council chair, vice chair, committe chairs and committee vice chairs are appointed via resolution, and the Rules of Procedure and Organization are adopted.

Here is a look at the open Hawaiʻi County Council races:

District 4: Eileen O‘Hara vs. Lloyd Enriquez

Eileen O’Hara, who served on the council from 2016-18, is hoping for another opportunity to represent the district.

The Puna resident has extensive government experience, not just from county council but as a legislative assistant for a state senator, a grant writer for nonprofits, and a university-level professor of public policy.

Earlier this week, O’Hara told Big Island Now it takes an honest, hard-working and knowledgeable candidate with experience in legislative government, policy and budgeting to deliver positive outcomes for Puna.

“The top priority for this district is addressing our deficient infrastructure — roads primarily and alternatives to Highway 130 specifically — as well as tackling public safety challenges by improving the officer-to-population ratio, which is one of the worst in the state and providing our (Hawaiʻi Police Department) with new technologies to assist their work,” O’Hara said.

Raised in Puna, Lloyd Enriquez has spent 33 years as a school safety officer and currently serves on the Hawai‘i County Police Commission.

During an interview with Nā Leo TV, Enriquez expressed interest in exploring increased taxes on nonresidents buying large properties, which limits housing for residents and raises property prices.

“District 4 is the fastest-growing area of Hawai‘i Island, and I have to ask: Is that helping us in Puna?” Enriquez asked. “I want to reduce taxes for local people and increase them for nonresidents because life must be affordable here.”

Enriquez is focused on listening to Lower Puna’s needs and wants, saying he plans to build real connections by staying close to the community if elected.

“We have outgrown our infrastructure, including roads and communications,” Enriquez said. “Our fire department often has trouble accessing roads, which is a problem we need to address.”

District 5: Shannon Matson vs. Ikaika Rodenhurst

With 10 days left to vote, Shannon Matson said her last-minute priority is simple: “To make sure the voters of Puna Mauka know that I am committed to being their responsive, accountable and accessible voice on the County Council.”

“My message to voters is that we deserve leadership that is fully invested in our residents’ day-to-day needs,” she said. “Whether that is working to find solutions to lower our cost of living, responding to natural disasters, securing water infrastructure, finding innovative solutions for our traffic, addressing ongoing Animal Control issues, or creating safe and accessible recreation spaces within our district, I’m ready to tackle these issues and more with the collaboration and support of our community.”

Ikaika Rodenhurst said if elected, he plans to prioritize road and infrastructure improvements to address longstanding traffic issues on Highway 11, followed by enhancing recreation opportunities for keiki and kūpuna in Upper Puna. He also plans to address the high cost of living on the island.

“We need infrastructure improvements to connect our community,” Rodenhurst said. “We face many challenges in Puna and Hawai‘i County. The only way to overcome them is together.”

Rodenhurst went on to urge the community to vote, saying: “Let their voice be heard, and have a say in how we move forward.”

District 6: Guy Enriques vs. Zed Ka‘apana Aki

The Ka‘ū District has been faced with many challenges since the primary election. Hurricane Lala devastated the rural community after the winds and floodwaters damaged utilities, destroyed homes and businesses, and unearthed graves at the Nā‘ālehu Cemetery.

Recovery is ongoing as a number of community members in Punalu‘u who are customers of the Punalu‘u Water and Sanitation utility are still without water and wastewater services, more than two months after Lala damaged the utility’s equipment.

Zed Ka‘apana Aki, a newcomer to politics, said he has three major recovery priorities:

• Ensuring that Public Assistance is fairly and appropriately used to rebuild, restore and rehabilitate public infrastructure that was compromised as a result of Hurricane Lala.
• Ensuring that individual residents and local businesses negatively impacted by Hurricane Lala are afforded opportunities for adequate financial assistance from federal, state and local governments.
• Ensuring District 6 is well-equipped with emergency/disaster response and resilience infrastructure and facilities, including the Ocean View emergency shelter, water storage facilities and food storage facilities; and establishing related programs for support and bolstering emergency/disaster response and resilience.

When asked about the ongoing water and wastewater outage in Punalu‘u, Aki said the county can and should intervene.

“The Mayor should direct Civil Defense to coordinate with the Office of Aging, Department of Health, the PUC, PWS, and any necessary qualified contractor to ensure adequate water delivery, accessible sanitation stations, available assistance for residents with mobility issues, and/or temporary accommodations elsewhere,” Aki said. “This should be happening, and it is something that I would immediately advocate for in my capacity as council member. The County can initiate emergency hires, hiring community members who are already volunteering their time to support Punaluʻu residents.”

Aki said District 6 has been neglected and deprioritized.

“Weʻre told, time and time again, that we are not the priority,” Aki said. “We find ourselves continuously placed at the bottom of the queue, waiting for everyone else to be heard before we are…”

Aki said the district needs change and a major part of that change is a shift in who represents the rural communities.

“If we keep electing the same old self-serving empty promises, then nothing will change – and we will further burden future generations with an ever-worsening plight,” he said.

If elected, Guy Enriques will stick with his campaign platform to create a Comprehensive District 6 Project list developed with input from affected residents, businesses, community organizations and leaders.  

 “We have an incredible opportunity to rise out of this devastation and build a much stronger, safer and healthier District 6 than existed before Lala,” Enriques said.

Enriques said he plans to work with the mayor, county department heads, state and federal agencies to establish priorities and work to insure these projects move forward.

With regard to the water and wastewater outage for PWS customers in Punalu‘u, Enriques said he would work to encourage the Public Utilities Commission to remove PWS as the current water operator and identify another certified operator. If there is none, allow the nonprofit Punalu’u Community Organization called Ninole Wai the opportunity to take over the water operation.  

“Their motivation is not for-profit, but to move swiftly and elevate the everyday pain of bucket baths, outdoor port-a-potties, hand-washing dishes, taking laundry to friends’, family’s, or a laundromat,” Enriques said. 

He added that now is a critical time for District 6.

“In the aftermath of Hurricane Lala, our communities face serious challenges, but also an opportunity to rebuild stronger, safer, and healthier than before,” he said. “My priorities are clear: helping our communities recover, mitigating future floods, protecting and preserving our precious coastline, improving essential infrastructure, and addressing the issues that directly affect our residents.”

Enriques, who has lived and served in the Ka‘ū community most of his life, said his previous experience on the county council has taught him the importance of listening, building relationships, working together, and following projects through to completion.